138 



Garden and Forest. 



INUMBER 371. 



tlie growth may take place while the peach is yet green and 

 hard. 



There are many Cherry-trees throughout our middle states 

 that have passed their stage of usefulness and are now doing 

 consitlerable damage to orchards that otherwise might be 

 profitable. One needs only to drive through the country in 

 almost any direction to find giant Cherry-trees carrying infe- 

 rior fruit, out of reach of pickers, and comparatively worthless 

 if gathered, which serves as propagation places for one of the 

 worst enemies of the stone fruits. Such trees in many cases 

 could be spared ; their owners ought to cut them down. Trees 

 after they have passed their stage of usefulness are not always 

 a source of infection to other trees ; but it is manifestly true 

 in the case of the Cherry, which becomes a place for the rapid 

 and abundant propagation of a microscopic enemy to other 

 stone fruits. ,, ,, , , 



Kuisei-s College. Byroii D. Halsted. 



Yellow-fruited Tomatoes. 



THERE are four distinct classes of Tomatoes as regards the 

 color of the fruit ; and in this case there is a more than 

 usually intimate association of other qualifies with that of 

 color. Of the red tomatoes there are the deep, dark red varie- 

 ties, like Perfection, Favorite, Ignotum, Opiimus and Pori- 

 derosa ; and a very distinct lighter pinkish colored g.'"oup of 

 such as Beauty and Dwarf Champion. Tliese are very distinct 

 also as regards texture, flavor and appearance of the flesh. 



The yellow varieties are similarly divided into two classes, 

 of which the old-fashioneti golden yellow apple-shaped fruit 

 represents the first type. There is almost a metallic lustre to 

 the skins of good specimens of this type. Concomitant char- 

 acters of this group are thin septae, tough flesh, large and abun- 

 dant seeds — a general assemblage of undesirable qualities. 

 The Yellow Trophy seems to fall into this classification here, 

 though, wherever I have seen it it has been very unstable, 

 showing usually several fruits of the next class ; and I have 

 often wondered if the seedsmen who sent out the seeds had 

 not selected them from the better strain, and if the trouble 

 was not simply in a reversion of the majority to a type evi- 

 dently prevenient. 



The second division of yellow varieties contains strains of 

 later origin, considered either historically or biologically. 

 Golden Queen and Golden Sunrise are the proper representa- 

 tives of tills group, though other names, not well authorized 

 or permanently adopted, have been found to cover similar 

 varieties. The Shah, said to be a sport from Mikado, is also 

 of the same color. These tomatoes are not properly yellow, 

 but are cream-colored, much duller than the other yellows, 

 and not at all metallic in lustre. At the same time they have 

 thick meat, fleshy septae, small seed cavities, are grainy and 

 tender in texture and pleasantly mild in flavor. 



This last group, it seems to me, has not received nearly 

 enough attention, either from amateur or professional horti- 

 culturists. The varieties already named, though, perhaps, not 

 so stable as might be desired, have superior table qualities 

 when grown in their perfection ; and if this were generally 

 understood, so that the demand for seed might gain some 

 proportions, they would present a fine field for work in seed 

 selection. They are milder in flavor than the best red varie- 

 ties ; and for eating sliced are much finer, according to my 

 taste. Their appearance on the table is also quite as attractive 

 as that of any fruit. 



Monsieur G. AUuard, in the last number of Revue Horticole, 

 1895, p. no, expresses a very high opinion of the yellow varie- 

 ties. He says : " The best yellow varieties of the tomato make 

 a very appetizing, clear yellow purine, which gives completely 

 the illusion of a fine stew of fruit. The flavor is equal to that 

 of the best red varieties. They are very much better than the 

 red tomatoes for mixing in sauces to which one wishes to give 

 more or less of a tomato flavor. Their color permits this to 

 l>e easily done, whereas the ordinary tomatoes impart to the 

 sauces a very undesirable red tint. They serve equally well 

 with red tomatoes for making very pretty salads, either in a 

 mixture of alternate slices of the two colors, or put upon sepa- 

 rate plates, and garnished with a fresh border of chervil. And 

 lastly, one may use these fine fruits, either separately or in 

 clusters, for garnishing desserts." 



It also seems to me that the cream-colored sorts would be 

 superior for canning, though I have not seen them tried. At 

 the canning factories color is a very important quality, the pink 

 varieties, so I am told, being entirely discarded because they 

 do not present an attractive appearance on coming out of the 

 can. Now, I should expect nicely canned specimens of Sun- 

 rise to be as handsome as canned peaches when opened. They 

 are somewhat suggestive of peaches when gerved sliced and 



fresh, and are almost as good as that standard of superlative 

 excellence when eaten with sugar and cream. 



Olilatioiiia Agncultural College. F. A. IVdHi^k. 



Onosma stellulatum. — It was a great pleasure the other day to 

 see in the nurseries of J. W. Manning, at Reading, Massachu- 

 setts, a good lot of this beautiful and rare hardy plant, for this 

 is one of the plants that are never forgotten after they are once 

 seen. The Onosmas belong to the Borage family, and all have 

 the characteristic rough foliage ; very few are desirable gar- 

 den-plants, but O. stellulatum is an exception, and its droop- 

 ing heads of bright yellow sweet-scented flowers justify 

 the garden name of Golden Drops, which has been given to it. 

 Thissame plant is often known as O. Tauricum, and tlie authori- 

 ties seem now to regard the latter as a fixed yellow-flowered 

 form of O. stellulatum, the flowers of which vary from white 

 to various shades of yellow. There is a dilficulty often expe- 

 rienced in keeping the plant for any length of time under cul- 

 tivation, and it is caused in most instances by planting it on a 

 level ground and in soil that is retentive of moisture. A sharp 

 sandy soil, not over rich, and sloping toward the sun, is ad- 

 mirably adapted to its culture. After flowering, the first oppor- 

 tunity should be taken to put in a few cuttings, which should 

 be taken off with a hard base and placed in clear sand, where 

 they will root without trouble, and duplicates can then be had 

 to make good a possible loss. Our losses have invariably 

 occurred during a protracted wet period in dog days. Heavy 

 showers will then bespatter the foliage with soil, and the plants 

 fall an easy prey to damp before the danger is noted ; lience 

 the desirability of planting in free soil and the usefulness of 

 placing small stones under the plants to keep the earth cool 

 and protect the foliage. O. albo-roseum is an annual species, 

 with which we have never been able to succeed ; and we have 

 still another species from seed sent from Asia Minor, but this 

 is not old enough to bloom yet, although it promises to do so 

 this season. Of some seventy species of this genus, the above 

 are about all that are in cultivation now, the rest not being 

 introduced yet. 



South Lancaster, Mass. E. O. Or pet. 



Lettuce for Forcing. — Every one who tries to keep up a sup- 

 ply of lettuce during the winter months knows the value of a 

 reliable variety. With so many new and old kinds now offered, 

 it is only by experience we can find out which one is most sat- 

 isfactory when all things are considered. Of several kinds 

 which we tried this winter, Rawson's new Hot House ap- 

 proaches most nearly an ideal Lettuce for forcing. It was grown 

 alongside of some old favorites, such as Boston Market, Ten- 

 nis Ball and others, but it easily leads all of them. It grows 

 to a large size, hearts quickly and well, has a delicate flavor, 

 and resists damp better than any variety we have ever grown. 



Tariylown, N. Y. William Scott. 



Correspondence. 



Oranges in Southern Mississippi. 

 To the Editor of Garden and Forest: 



Sir, — In what may be called ordinary or average seasons 

 oranges ripen well in southern Mississippi, but killing frosts 

 come every few years, so that while oranges are grown here 

 as a luxury they are never considered as a reliable, staple crop. 

 Nevertheless, immunity from cold waves for a few seasons 

 gives every one a sense of security, all precautions against the 

 frost are neglected and then the disaster falls. About this 

 enchanting coast town, in the extreme southern part of the 

 state, up to holiday week, the Orange-trees were loaded with 

 fruit ; our Christmas oranges came fresh from a grove in full 

 bearing, and no fruit was ever more beautiful. Then came the 

 sudden drop in temperature, and every orange on the trees 

 was frozen to a solid cake of ice. All the leaves and tender 

 limbs in the groves died, many fine trees were killed outright, 

 and since New Year's there have been three more periods of 

 distinctly freezing weather, to complete the destruction. 



The special purpose of my letter, however, is to say that one 

 grove here escaped destruction and is now showing signs of 

 returning growth in every tree but one. The owner is an in- 

 telligent Italian, and it may be worth while to give his method 

 of treatment. He says that his father cultivates oranges near 

 Naples, and his practice is the one generally employed there 

 as a safeguard against periods of excessive cold. In autumn 

 he scrapes away the rich top soil from the roots of his trees 

 and allows them to dry, and since he irrigates his grove he at 

 this time withholds all water. The trees llien are at rest, except 

 for the ripening fruit, which seems to be as good as that in 



